Part 17 - Choda III (A.D. 1403)

Choda II was the son of Bhima by Lakkamba. He was the last but the best known prince of the dynasty. He is mentioned as Bhimaya Choda and Lakkama choda after the names of his parents Bhimaya and Lakkama. Two of his inscriptions one dated A.D. 1403 and the other undated and incomplete are at Panchadharala. According to the former Choda was great in every respect, in displaying splendour, destroying enemies and helping people. His titles were—Godavarimandanamandalesvara Sangrama Sahasrabahu, birudankarudra, mahishmativallabha and lord of Madhyadesa. He appears to have extended his kingdom southwards in the Godavari district.

His Political Relations

The last date available for Choda is AD. 1403. It is not known whether Choda owed allegiance to the Eastern Ganga emperor Narasimha IV.

In extending the kingdom westwards and southwards Choda came into conflict with the kings of Vijayanagar and the Reddis of Rajahmundry. Choda III bore the epithet—Kamatagodha-magharatta i.e. destroyer of the Karnatas.® As the Hoysalas. ceased to exist by the time of Choda III—A.D. 1403, here

Karnata must refer to the kingdom of Vijayanagar ruled over by Hanhara II (A.D. 1377-1404) and his son Bukka II (A.D. 1404-1406) and Devaraya (1406-1422 A.D.). Where and when Choda III came into conflict with the Vijayanagar armies, is not known. As early as A.D. 1356, Sangama, a nephew of Bukka I defeated the king of Orissa. Probably in one of Vijayanagar expeditions into southern Kalinga, in the early part of the reign of Hanhara II, the Vijayanagar armies had a reverse in the hands of Choda III and his generals and this enabled Choda to style himself the vanquisher of the Karnata armies. And this must have happened after A.D. 1377 and before A.D. 1404, the first and the last dates available for Hanhara II.

Choda III claims to have protected the rulers in Mahashalikona which has been rightly identified with Konasima in the Godavari delta. By the middle of the 14th century A.D. Konamandala constituted a part of the Reddi kingdom of Kondavidu and no Koramandala Haihayas are heaid of after A.D. 1364. So the local chief in Konamandala after A.D. 1364 probably refer to the Telugu Choda Annadeva and his son Virabhadra, and the Undirajas, whose territories were included in the Reddi kingdom of Rajahmundry after 1385 A.D. How Choda III come to protect the rulers in Konamandala is not clear. Probably the rulers in Mahashatkona conspired to rebel against the Reddis and shake off their yoke to the Reddi throne at Rajahmundry, with the help of local rulers in Kalinga including Choda III. When Katayaveoma was to punish them, probably Choda III came to their help. Choda’s title Godavariraandanamandalisvara further shows his successful interference into Reddi politics in this period. As the pillar inscription does not say that Choda III vanquished the enemy of the chiefs of Konamandals, it is likely that by A.D. 1403 Kataya Verna during his invasions into Southern Kalinga conquered not only the chiefs in Maha Shatkona but also Choda III.

End of the Dynasty

No sons and successors of Choda III are heard of. So the dynasty seems to have ended with his death, some time after A.D. 1403. The Ganga emperor at the time was Narasimha IV, whose reign Orissa experienced frequent foreign invasions from all sides. Probably the Kona Haihaya kingdom at Panchadharala was put to an end by the brothers Vema Reddi and Virabhadra Reddi, under the rule of Allada after Kataya Vema, during their expedition of conquest of Kalinga for which the Reddi inscriptions and literature bear testimony.